You sit in anticipation as the tarot card reader shuffles her cards and then asks you to follow suit.

The drama and suspense builds. Will you meet the love of your life? Will you win the lottery? Will your boiler stop leaking this week?

She turns the cards one by one and you gasp in terror. For, there, nestled among the other more unfathomable cards is the Death card, the Grim Reaper, set to take you or a loved one away forever. It can only mean the end is nigh.

At this point, if your tarot card reader is a good one, she’ll pass the smelling salts and calm you down.

Alison Cross, chairwoman of the Tarot Association of the British Isles (Tabi) explains: ‘I have never interpreted death literally in a reading and can’t think of a good reader who would be happy to do so either. Death’s appearance in a spread is more to do with the client having areas of their life where they would benefit from rooting out anything dead or dying, for example, a toxic friendship that completely sucks all your energy away; any idea or belief that no longer represents you as you are today, that kind of thing.’

It is difficult not to think of literal mean-ings for cards such as Death, the Devil and the Tower.

While the origins of the tarot are shrouded in mystery, popular culture has done little for its reputation as a dark and scary art.

Think of the reading carried out by the character Solitaire in the James Bond movie Live And Let Die and you can see why the myth of death literally being represented in the card persists.

The cards that are usually used as visual devices by Hollywood are called the major arcana; all tarot decks are split into 56 minor arcana, or picture, cards and 22 major arcana cards.

There is much astrological and symbolic imagery in tarot and the most familiar deck used in the West is called the Rider-Waite.

This deck has images for all 78 cards, making it much easier for the budding mystic to read. However, beginners should remember to avoid alarming the person they’re reading for by not fully understanding the imagery.

Satan at lunchtimeCross is very careful about this: ‘Tarotists who are members of Tabi operate to a code of ethics and are mindful of their responsibilities when giving a reading. Personally, before a single card is selected, I put my client’s mind at rest by explaining that, just as the Devil card doesn’t mean the imminent appearance of Satan in the work canteen at lunchtime, neither does the appearance of Death in the tarot spread mean someone they love is going to die.’

Cross adds: ‘I really don’t have a card I dislike. When I’m reading for myself, I see them as 78 friends who have each got a message for me.’

Tarot reader Pawan Jiwajee says: ‘People often come to me with relationship questions and can get quite upset if what they perceive as negative cards come up.

‘They often wrongly assume the Death card might mean the end of their relationship and I have to put their minds at rest.’

There are, of course, far more conventional ways for couples to sort out their problems. A spokeswoman for counsellors Relate advises: ‘If you are having doubts about your relationship, it’s advisable to talk to your partner first. Making assumptions about your relationship is a common problem that can be tackled by honest discussion.’

Or you could simply pull a James Bond manoeuvre and have a deck filled with only the Lovers card in order to seduce your partner.